Saturday, November 12, 2011

Activision Breaks Records with the Latest Installment of the Call of Duty Series

On Friday, November 11 Activision released a statement that said, “Shattering its own day-one sales records, Activision Publishing, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, announced that its highly-anticipated Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has become the biggest entertainment launch ever with an estimated sell-through of more than $400 million and more than 6.5 million units in North America and the United Kingdom alone in the first 24 hours of its release, according to Charttrack and retail customer sell-through information.”

Activision said that it was able to break the record that it set with Call of Duty: Black Ops last year, which, at the time, sold a record setting 5.6 million units and generated $360 million in sales. Activision truly believes that the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 could be the biggest video game launch to-date.

"We believe the launch of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 is the biggest entertainment launch of all time in any medium, and we achieved this record with sales from only two territories," said the CEO of Activision Blizzard, Inc. Bobby Kotick in a statement. "Other than Call of Duty, there has never been another entertainment franchise that has set opening day records three years in a row. Life-to-date sales for the Call of Duty franchise exceed worldwide theatrical box office takes for ‘Star Wars' and 'Lord of the Rings,' two of the most successful entertainment franchises of all time."

Amazon has also said that Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 has been its best-selling video game preorder ever.

Eric Hirshberg, the CEO Activision Publishing, said, "Call of Duty is more than a game. It's become a major part of the pop cultural landscape. It is a game that core enthusiasts love, but that also consistently draws new people into the medium. It is the most intense, adrenaline pumping entertainment experience anywhere. I would like to thank our millions of passionate fans worldwide. We made this game for you."Call of Duty: Black Ops ended up making $1 billion in sales in less than two months, and it definitely seems like Modern Warfare 3 is set up to make that much, if not more, in less than two months.

The game is now available for PC, PS3 and the Xbox 360 for $59.99; for the Wii for $49.99 and for the Nintendo DS for $29.99. There is also a limited edition Xbox 360 console package available for $399.99. The package includes Modern Warfare 3, an Xbox with MW3 artwork, a 320GB hard drive and two wireless controllers.

Sources: PCMag - Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 Breaks Records, Makes $400 Million in One Day and Activision - Call of Duty®: Modern Warfare® 3 Sets All-Time Record for the Biggest Entertainment Launch with More than $400 Million in North America and United Kingdom Sales Alone.